discoverhealthsouth Volume 4 Winter 2014-2015 Faith and the Right Attitude Help a Local PSU Fan Walk Again Robert Forbes is grateful, believing that attitude and faith are everything. Three years ago, he was lying in a hospital bed at Mount Nittany Medical Center, critically ill with meningitis. PHOTO 1: Trego Therapy.jpg (Attached to email) I felt like I was near death, Forbes says. After more than a month in the hospital, Forbes was unable to walk and needed intensive rehabilitation. He went to HealthSouth Nittany Valley Rehabilitation Hospital in Pleasant Gap. When Forbes began his rehabilitation, he was in a wheelchair. His goal was to return home with maximum independence. With several weeks of inpatient physical and occupational therapy, he learned to walk again. When he was discharged, he continued his therapy at our outpatient location, gaining more strength and stability. Forbes has made a full recovery and is enjoying an active lifestyle. A State College resident for 12 years, he bleeds blue and white. Forbes attends Penn State sports events and is active in his church, St. Paul s United Methodist Church, welcoming new members and visiting those who could use some support and encouragement. Forbes recent visit to a HealthSouth patient brought back memories of his rehabilitation and he was inspired to share his gratitude with the HealthSouth Nittany Valley staff. Thanks to my faith and the people at HealthSouth, I learned to walk again, Forbes says. Not only can I walk again, I play golf and enjoy all of the active events here in State College and at Penn State. We are Penn State! A Higher Level of Care 550 W. College Avenue Pleasant Gap, PA 16823 814 359-3421 800 842-6026 Fax 814 359-5898 NittanyValleyRehab.com
2 Rrecruitment Corner Join Our Expanding Team HealthSouth has experienced a surge in patient census over the past year, requiring us to add staff in several key areas to maintain a consistent higher hospital capacity. Please share this recruitment information with friends and business partners who may have the skill set we are looking for to fill one of our additional positions. Registered Nurse Rehab Nursing Technician Rehab Therapy Technician Speech Pathologist The latest information concerning open positions can be found on our website, NittanyValleyRehab.com, under the careers tab. Nutrition Classes Planned for 2015 HealthSouth finished its monthly classes, Nutrition and Your Health, ending the year with Nutrition and Diabetes. The 90-minute classes are free and open to anyone interested in learning more about how nutrition impacts our health and how we can improve our diet in fun and interesting ways. The classes, taught by dietitians, include food tastings, cooking demonstrations, heart-healthy recipes, guest speakers and door prizes. Past topics included Gluten-free Eating, Healthy Eating on a Budget and Quick and Easy Heart-Healthy Meals. The 2015 series will begin Thursday, March 19, 2015, kicking off National Nutrition Month. For more information, contact Marketing Liaison Suzanne Irwin, MA, at 482-1371, or go to nittanyvalleyrehab.com. What s Inside Faith and the right attitude ------------------- 1 help a local psu fan walk again Nutrition Classes --------------------------------- 2 planned for 2015 From Home to HealthSouth--------------------- 3 Getting the Help You Need to Remain Independent Quality Update -------------------------------------- 4 Improving the patient experience ----------- 5 Through Comfort, Professionalism, And Respect Transitions of Care Fair Promotes -------- 6 Education and Collaboration Community Education For ---------------------- 6 Your Next Meeting National Rehabilitation Week Recap------- 7 Fun Facts for Snacks----------------------------- 8
3 From Home to HealthSouth: Getting the Help You Need to Remain Independent When someone you know is struggling to stay strong and safe in his or her home, help may be just a phone call away. HealthSouth Nittany Valley rehabilitation liaisons are available to provide a no cost assessment, to see if you, your patient or loved one would benefit from rehabilitation. Patients who are at home after an illness, injury or surgery may need a short-term rehabilitation stay to remain safe and independent at home, says Tracy Ewing, RN, BSN, director of marketing operations. Rehabilitation liaisons go to patients, wherever they are; at home, their doctor s office or the emergency room at no cost and with no commitment from patients or their families. Once the patient arrives at our hospital, our goal is to help them regain strength so that they can return home home and remain independent. HealthSouth rehabilitation hospital patients receive three hours of therapy a day, paced according to the patient s needs. Our intensity of therapy is one of the unique aspects of rehabilitation at HealthSouth Nittany Valley. It is what helps our patient s regain strength to safely return home and contributes to cost efficiency and overall population health management goals in our community, Ewing adds. Rehabilitation liaisons are clinicians and care coordinators serving as a resource for patients, families and their healthcare team. We assess the patient s needs and when appropriate, help them transition to HealthSouth Nittany Valley, says Ewing. (Pictured from left) PRN Rehabilitation Liaisons Mary Madigan, RN and Kirsten Smith, LPN. HealthSouth rehabilitation liaisons connect our patients, and their healthcare providers, with the highest level of rehabilitation in our region. Our team goes to the patient in their home, the hospital, emergency room or doctor s office, assessing patients needs for rehabilitation, including physical, occupational and speech therapy. Front row, from left: Barb Angelo, LPN, COTA/L, rehabilitation liaison; Suzanne Irwin, MA, marketing liaison; Kathy Marino, CRRN, rehabilitation liaison; and Stephanie Lowry, LPN, rehabilitation liaison. Back row from left: Jennifer Miller, BSN, MA, RN, rehabilitation liaison; Cathy Steffen, LPN, rehabilitation liaison; Tracy Ewing, RN, BSN, director of marketing operations; Brandy McCardle, LPN, admissions liaison; Mollie Bakhsheshe, RT, rehabilitation liaison. Continued on page 4
4 Quality UPDATE The Home Referral Trend and Transitions of Care Initiatives Admissions to HealthSouth Nittany Valley from a home setting have grown in the past several years. This population is coming to HealthSouth via referrals from community-based agencies, personal care homes, emergency departments, hospital observation status, primary care physician practices and other self-referral situations. Outcomes for this population year-to-date through October indicate a more than 80 percent overall discharge to community rate. Forty-five percent of discharge diagnoses are in a neurological conditions category. We thought it was important to let our post-acute care partners know about the successes we have experienced with this home referral population and to discuss some potential areas for future collaboration concerning the 30-day postdischarge period. Our goal at HealthSouth Nittany Valley is enhanced communication and collaboration to ensure a positive impact on readmission prevention efforts for the older adult with multiple chronic conditions (MCC) in our service area. In 2014, members of the HealthSouth team participated in the Care Transitions Summit sponsored by Mount Nittany Medical Center and three work groups that resulted from the Summit, including; Readmission Prevention, Patient/Family Education Tool and Standardized Communication Tool. We felt the need to continue the work we started as part of the Care Transitions Summit and held a Transitions of Care breakfast for community-based caregivers in the fall. We followed that event with a Transitions of Care Fair to educate our internal clinical team about options for keeping patients in the home with 24-hour services. We are looking to expand this collaboration to include a focus on other levels of care in order to improve the safety and effectiveness of care transitions. Initiatives for 2015 include reaching out to our post-acute care partners in the community about what patients, families and caregivers can expect from an inpatient rehabilitation hospital stay and the discharge process. We look forward to ongoing opportunities to collaborate on improving the care in our community. Please contact Tracy Ewing, director of marketing operations, or Suzanne Irwin, marketing liaison, at 814 359-5607 if you have additional ideas or suggestions for future collaborations. From Home to HealthSouth, continued from page 3 HealthSouth case managers work with each patient throughout their stay, coordinating their care and discharge plans from the time they start inpatient rehabilitation, ensuring smooth transitions of care when patients go home and to the community. For a free rehabilitation assessment, or to learn more about coming from home to HealthSouth, call 1-800-842-6026. Front row, from left: Sharon Bathgate, case management assistant; Kim Germino, RN, Heart Failure team; Michelle Ranio, CCM, Stroke Team. Back row, from left: Amy Adams, CCM, Brain Injury Team; Linda Gray, RN, CCM, director of case management, Parkinson s disease team.
5 Improving the Patient Experience through Comfort, Professionalism, and Respect The HealthSouth Corporation is currently in the process of implementing a revised Comfort, Professionalism and Respect (CPR) program across their entire hospital system, including HealthSouth Nittany Valley. The program has existed corporate-wide for many years, but has not contained a standardized format across the company until now. HealthSouth chose 30 staff members from hospitals across all regions to partner with Press Ganey consultants to develop a program that could be taught to all staff to help foster improved patient, family, and staff experiences. The program is being taught to staff in two parts. At Nittany Valley, each session is taught to employees in a three-week period. The first session focuses on comfort, the second professionalism and respect. Each session is designed to engage staff, encouraging them to be a part of the conversation and working together to understand the concepts brought forth. Throughout each of these training sessions there is a strong focus on communicating effectively and empathetically, understanding how your body language affects the conversation, anticipating needs and concerns, and accountability. Nittany Valley Chief Executive Officer Susan Hartman is pleased to see the new program rolling out. This program is good news and shows a strong commitment to build a culture that supports teamwork and effective communication with patients, families and colleagues Hartman says. It brings to life our values of comfort, professionalism and respect. The strong focus on leadership rounding of patients and staff, process changes, new tools, and behavior changes that are necessary to support this program will benefit everyone. We can be proud that these patient experience standards represent the values of HealthSouth. Comfort Cards Enhance the Patient Experience HealthSouth Nittany Valley adds some special touches to create a unique patient experience. They have become part of our culture, and we know how much they mean to patients and families. Recently, our Patient Experience Group (PEG) added something new to the patient care focus. The group asked the question, How do we communicate things that patients tell us are important to them? For example, if privacy and personal space carries extra significance or a certain beverage is their drink of choice, how do we ensure that our team is aware of this? We created the Comfort Card, which communicates specifically what will make a patient s stay more comfortable. The admissions team initiates the pink cards, while anyone in the hospital can contribute to the cards. The cards are placed on each patient s chart, and should be accessed by members of the interdisciplinary team. The cards are reviewed at the shift-to-shift handoffs, morning rounds and team conferences. Information on the cards may include likes and dislikes, patients preferred name, snack preferences, routines to which they are accustomed, and anything else that will help them feel more comfortable during their stay, says Dave Pellerano, director of quality and risk management. Some of our patients have been through a lot, many with life-changing experiences, before coming to us. The use of these cards helps our patients overcome a difficult time by making their stay as pleasant and comfortable as possible.
6 Transitions of Care Fair Promotes Education and Collaboration Judy Hall of In-Home Care Services (left) talks with HealthSouth employees about the care they provide. HealthSouth hosted its second Transitions of Care Fair on October 29, 2014. Home and community care providers set up exhibits for HealthSouth employees during lunch. The goal was to enhance the collaborative efforts of HealthSouth and community partners by offering an educational opportunity and resource fair. HealthSouth employees were grateful to learn more about our home and community care partners, both for our patients and families, and their own loved ones. Community Education for Your Next Meeting HealthSouth Nittany Valley offers educational presentations for community groups, professional organizations and senior centers at no cost. Topics include: Making a Choice for Rehabilitation: What You Need to Know Stroke Prevention and Stroke Bingo Learn the Risk Factors Parkinson s Disease and Rehabilitation Choices: Improving Your Condition Nutrition and Parkinson s Disease Maintain the Brain Staying Healthy Hand and Respiratory Hygiene Hydration (signs and symptoms, urine color charts) Arthritis: Adapting Your Life Fall Risk Prevention and Assessment Safe Exercise for Seniors DriveAble: When Someone Is Safe to Drive Proper Body Mechanics and Ergonomics Nutrition and Diabetes Healthy Eating on a Budget Quick and Easy Heart-Healthy Meals HealthSouth Occupational Therapist Stacy Otto (far right) helps residents of The Oaks at Pleasant Gap learn arm knitting. HealthSouth teaches arm knitting (using your hands and arms, as opposed to needles) as part of occupational therapy at our inpatient rehabilitation hospital. HealthSouth also takes the class into the community to help educate people about rehabilitation while teaching a new way to enjoy a favorite pastime. Presentations can be held at HealthSouth in Pleasant Gap or we can come to you. For more information, please contact Marketing Liaison Suzanne Irwin at 814 482-1371.
7 National Rehabilitation Week Recap This year, HealthSouth Nittany Valley celebrated National Rehabilitation Week (September 21-27, 2014) with the theme Passport to Independence. National Rehabilitation Week gives HealthSouth the unique opportunity to educate and promote rehabilitation and the positive impact it can have on the members of our community. The staff at Nittany Valley helped to develop events for patients, staff, family and referral sources including a networking after hours, games and movies on the nursing units and in therapy, as well as award ceremonies to recognize the achievements made by patients over the past year. Case Managers Kim Germino and Michelle Heverly work with patient Cyril Baker during the World s Fair event. Staff members researched games from around the world and re-imagined them to be compatible on the nursing units for an afternoon of fun for patients and family. Registered Dietitian Caryll DeFrate and Pharmacy Director Lance Kephart are ready to go at the start line during the Wheelchair Relay Race. As a part of the Patient Experience Olympics, employees were challenged to navigate their chairs within a path using only the right side of their body, simulating the mobility challenges many patients face during their rehabilitation. Nurse Jacqueline Tepsic and Therapy Manager Heather Carpenter catch up with Star Patient Richard Goss and his wife, Cyndi, after the Star Patient Ceremony at HealthSouth Nittany Valley. Every year, staff members nominate patients who have shown extreme determination in their rehabilitation and recognize them at the end of the week s celebrations.
8 Fun Facts for Snacks 1. A no-cost rehabilitation assessment can be performed by a rehabilitation liaison wherever the patient is, whether they are at home, the emergency room or a doctor s office. a) True 2. HealthSouth Nittany Valley patients receive at least three hours of therapy a day. a) True Rehabilitation after your illness, injury, or surgery. Better Outcomes. Quality Care. 3. What is HealthSouth Nittany Valley s overall discharge to community percentage for patients admitted from a home setting? Additionally, what percentage of these discharge diagnoses was in a neurological condition category? 80% 45% 4. HealthSouth s quality improvement program is known as CPR, what does this stand for C Comfort P R Professionalism Respect Answers for the Fun Facts for Snacks Quiz can be found throughout this newsletter. If you would like to check your answers before submitting, please visit http://www.nittanyvalleyrehab.com/en/our-hospital/newsletter Click on the link to Winter 2014/2015. Scroll to the Fun Facts for Snacks Quiz where you can find the correct answers to these questions. Submission Deadline: March 31, 2015 Submit by fax to 814 359-5898 Submitted by: Phone number: Facility: (Will be used to notify winners) A Higher Level of Care Pleasant Gap 814 359-5630 Lewistown 717 242-5400 Mifflintown 717 436-8233 NittanyValleyRehab.com